Page:Nuclear Safety in China (2019).pdf/4

 On March 24, 2014, at the third Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague, the Netherlands, President Xi Jinping proposed a rational, coordinated and balanced nuclear safety strategy. China's nuclear safety strategy is the embodiment of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era in the nuclear field, an important element of China's overall national security framework, and a major innovation in the theory of nuclear safety governance. The strategy is an important milestone in promoting international nuclear safety. It lays out the principles and methods for addressing the fundamental issues of global nuclear safety governance and building a community of shared future for nuclear safety.

The kernel of China's nuclear safety strategy is the "Four Emphases". Systematically promoting nuclear safety in an all-round way is the main purpose of China's nuclear safety strategy, which is embodied in equal emphasis on development and safety, rights and obligations, independent efforts and coordination, and symptoms and root causes.

– We should place equal emphasis on development and safety, and develop the nuclear industry in a context of guaranteed safety. Development is the foundation of safety, while safety is a precondition of development. Development and safety are the basic requirements of humanity for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. We should uphold the concept of seeking safety for development and promoting development with safety, so that the two objectives can be integrated and mutually reinforcing. Only by achieving better development can we truly control safety risks; and only by guaranteeing safety can nuclear energy achieve sustainable development.

– We should place equal emphasis on rights and obligations, and promote international nuclear safety on the basis of respect for the rights and interests of all countries. States should effectively fulfill their obligations under the international legal instruments on nuclear safety, fully implement the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, and consolidate and develop the existing legal framework for nuclear safety. At the same time, we should adhere to the principle of fairness and uphold pragmatism in respecting the right of all countries to adopt their own nuclear safety policies and measures suited to their national conditions, and respecting their right to protect sensitive nuclear safety information.

– We should place equal emphasis on independent efforts and coordination, and seek universal nuclear safety with a mutually beneficial approach. Nuclear safety is first and foremost a national issue, and the primary responsibility should be borne by the government of each country. Governments should understand and undertake their responsibilities, and be responsible not only to themselves but also to the world. They should strengthen coordination, make joint